Tile-laying machine.



C. H. CLARK.

TILE LAYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 21, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

I I! r I r! IIII/l (I I III Zy M r THE NORRIS PETERS C0,. P'lOTO-LITHQ, WASHINGTON. L7v C.

C. H. CLARK.

TILE LAYING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 21, 1912.

1,1 12,894. Patented Oct. 6, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

through the earth i the tile are laid, and

CHARLES HJGLARK, OF WATERTOWN, VVISCON SIN.

TILE-LAYING MACHINE.

f! b all w/zomit may concern Be it known that I, (Jr-mamas H. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of ll zitertown, in the county of Jefferson and State of lVisconsin, have invented certain,

new and usefullmprovementsin Tile-Laying Machines; and do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

This invention relates to a novel machine for laying drain tile in the earth and to novel features of construction of the ele mcnts which go to make up the machine,and the invention consistsfin the matters hereinafter set forth and more particularly pointed out in theappended claims, i i a y A tile laying machine, embodying my invention comprises a cavity forming mole having means toadvance the same forwardly at a predetermined depth, with means to maintain a predetermined grade of the bottom of the cavity on which cooperating means to permit the wall of the cavity to set orbecome sufficiently permanent to hold its shape until the tile are laid therein. Connected to the mole so as to be drawn forwardly therewith through the cavity which is formed by, the mole is a flexible tile carrier on which the tiles are laid one by one in endwise relation to each other whereby the tiles are drawn by the forward movement of the carrier into said cavity, and after a predetermined length of tile has been laid,depending upon the length of thecarrier, the carrier is drawn forwardlyfrom beneath the row ,of tile so as toleave the same in proper end to end relation. a

In order to give the walls of the cavity formed by the mole suchpermanency as will a i provide between 1 cavity to set so as maintain the proper cross section of the cavity and prevent the earth'from falling back into the cavity before the tiling is laid, I the cavity forming mole to permitjthe walls of the to prevent the same fall: ing inwardly before the tile are placed, This may be effected by providingon themole or other part associated therewith a gradually reduced supporting surface against or in contact with which the wall of the cavity inwardlyor sets, so as to and carrier means Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed September 21, 1912. Serial No.

her is made, in its larger than the mole,

the tile carrier and the tile.

, PatentedOot.= 6, 1914.

give to the inner surface of the wall a texture that will retain its shape and perma nence until tiling is placed therein. This may be effected by tapering therear end of the mole or by providinga following memher, as an expansion block, which is rearwardly tapered to give proper support to the inspringing or contracting wall ofthe cavity. hen a separate wall settingmeinprovided, it may take the form of an expansion block which follows the mole to expand the cavity beyond the mole diameter and thereafter allow within a period which depends upon the character of the soil in which the tile are being laid. WVhen a separate expansion memher is used it trails behind the mole and is a greatest diameter, somewhat for the double purpose of enabling one mole to be used with a number of sizes of blocks, and also to more firmly compact the earth laterally and upwardly, when working in a rather unstable} character of earth, so as to thereby maintain the bot-: tom of the cavity at the true predetermined grade while compacting the upper wall and the upper parts of the side walls of the cavity to prevent theearth fallinginto the cavthe wall to contract ity as before stated. The expansion and sup- 1 porting surface may be formed on the mole member instead of a separately formed expanding member.

lhereduction ofthe wall forming supportingsurface, whether on the mole or a separate expansion block, permits a gradual contraction of the cavity wall as distinguished from a tendencyof the wall to abruptlyicontract or spring inwardly if the wall supporting surface be abruptly discontinued. This gradual contracting or springing of the cavity wall gives a firm texture to thewall by what may be termed smearing action. Moreover, should pebbles or other particle like formations appear at the effect to embed the pebbles or like particles inthe wall andprevent them dropping downwardly to the bottom of the cavity to interfere with the proper operation of properlaying of the The cavity forming mole is drawn through the earth by means ofa narrow colter bar attached at its lower end to the mole and at its upper end, abovethe ground,

the top wall of v the cavity such smearing action'will have to a beam or like device which latter is suitably connected to a suitable power means for drawing the same forwardly, and is associated with means for manipulating the beam so as to maintain a predetermined grade of the bottom of the cavity regardless of the unevenness of the ground over which the draft device for the machine may be passing.

The tile carrier may, and preferably will, be made of a plurality of trough shaped articulated sections, the joining or articulation of the sections giving ,flexiblity to the carrier to permitit to readily adapt itself to indirect courses and also to be rolled for handling the same during transportation and storage. The trough shape of the carrier insures that the tile will seek its lowest level on the carrier when supported thereby and to direct the tile to the lowermost part of the floor of the cavity when the carrier is stripped therefrom, and thereby insure alinement of the tile in proper abutting relation to provide a continuous thoroughfare of the maximum capacity of the tile.

Any suitable means may be employed for pulling the mole and the tile carrier forwardly through the earth and for stripping the carrier from a line'of tile after the same has been laid, practical forms of such means being hereinafter described.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a complete apparatus in operation. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, partially in elevation and partially in section, of the tile laying devices and the draft mechanism. Fig. 3 is a side elevation, with parts broken away, of the mole, expansion block and a portion of the carrier. Fig. 4 is a plan View of said parts. Fig. 5 is front end elevation of theexpansion block. Fig. 6 is a cross section taken through the excavation formed by the mole, the expansion block and the tile carrier showing a tile thereon. Fig. 7 is a side elevation of a modified form of mole and expansion member.

,As shown in the drawings, 10 designates the cavity forming mole, 11 the expansion block and 12 the tile carried which trails after and is connected to the expansion block.

13 designates a vertical colter barwhich is attached at its lower end in any suitable manner to the mole 10 and extends upwardly therefrom through a vertical opening 1 1 in the rear, thickened end of a draft bar 15, which latter is connected at its front end y winch 17. For relatively light work this winch may be a horse power winch, as herein shown. For heavy workI may employ a motor power winch. The front end of the draft beam 15 is suspended, in any suitable manner,,from the axle 18 of a wheeled truck, designated as a whole by 19. The said a cable 16 to a pulling device, as the colter is beveled or sharpened at its front edge, as indicated at 21, to facilitate its cutting through the earth.

The suspension means for the front end of the draft beam preferably comprise a raising and lowering device, such as a screw or ratchet mechanism 22, the latter being herein shown, whereby the front end ofthe draft beam may be raised and lowered to maintain a predetermined grade of the tile receiving cavity, notwithstanding -'irregu larities of the ground over which the truck passes. In order to give stability to the truck relatively to the draft beam, I may connect the axle of the truck to the cable 16, at a point in front of the truck, by means of the cables 22 manner of the hounds at the rearaxleiof a wagon. V

The opening 1 1 in. the rearend of the draft beam 15 is made wider in the plane of the beam, and is upwardly and outwardly tapered at its rear wall 23. The colter bar is held in the'proper angular relation to the draft beam by engagement thereof with the lower thickened portion of said rear wall the latter acting in the 23 and blocks or wedges 24 between the upper end of the colter bar and the upper end of the forward wall-25 of said opening 14; the stress being transmitted from the colter bar to the draft beam at said lower or thickened part of the rear wall of the opening 14: and said wedges or blocks 24:. In order to adjust the machine for deeper or shallower cuts I may provide the colter bar with a series of longitudinally spaced openings 28 to receive a transverse pin 29 on which the draft beam rests.

When the mole and the trailing parts are to be lifted out of the earth the blocks or wedges 24 are removed and a wider block or wedge (or a number thereof) inserted in its place, so as to force the bar against the rearv inclined wall 23 of the opening 14:, and thereby bring the colter bar at an acute angle to the draft beam. This adjustment'has the effect to point the mole toward the'sunv mole out of the ground, the draft beam is Should the single adjustment not be suflicient to lift the loo dropped relatively to the colter bar, which is effected by the removal of the pin 29, and

the blocks or wedges 24' again inserted into place, which has the effect to decrease the angle of the partially raised colter bar to the draft beam and thereby increase the lifting effect on the mole. Moreover, the blocks or wedges 2 1 permit the angle of' the colter bar and mole to be varied in the normal use of the machine, so that when working in soft ground where the weight of the parts tends to depress or sink the mole, a slight upward inclination given to the mole counteracts entirely upwardly.

' of any suitable material and is beveled at its upper front side, as indicated at 31, so as to give a wedge effect to the front end of the mole to facilitate its entrance into and passage through the earth and compact the earth upwardly. Theoriginal contour of the' cylindric shaped mole body is retained at itsbottom,however, inorder that the displacement of the earth The mole is shownas connected to the expansion block by means'of a draftfliron 32 which occupies a groove in the bottom of the block and is bolted thereto and is provided with an eye 36 to engage a hook at the rear of the draft iron 37which draft iron is apertured at its front end to receive a pin 38 that extends through the draft iron and through a bar 39 which extends rearwardly from and is attached to the mole, as shown in Fig. 3. A tail iron 39 occupies a longitudinal recess in the expansion block at the bottom thereof beneath the draft iron 32 and overlaps thebar 39 and is apertured to receive the pin 38. The tail iron 39 extends throughout the length of the expansion block and is rounded to conform to the lower curved side ofthe block, and is formed at its rear end with a hook 41 to engage an eye in a coupling piece 42 that is attached in any suitable manner-to the end of the carrier12. This construction permits an expansion block to be readily lifted from the tailiron 39, to be replaced by a larger or smaller block. Moreover, the pull from the mole to the carrier is transmitted through the tail iron and not through thelexpansion block.

i the character of the earth in which the tile The mole is made of a diameter somewhat greater than the tile to belaid. Forinstance, when laying a four inch tile, whichis about five and one-half inchesinexternal diameter, a mole of about seven inches diameter will be employed. The expansion block, when the latter is employed as a separate art is made at its lar est diameter as in-. a b a 2 .d1cated at 42, of somewhat larger diameter than that of the mole. For instance, in the dimensions above given; I may employ an expansion block of aboutieight inches maximum diameter. The maximum diameter of the expansion block will depend largely on is being laid, it being evident that a larger expansion block and a greater extent of expansion of the earth relatively to the dia1neteraof the mole, may bevemployed in soft moist earth than in harder and more solid earth. The said expansion block is tapered on'its upper and lateral sides at the front end, as indicated at 4:3, ell, an, said tapers preferably extending throughout the prinby the mole shall be -cipal length of the block. These tapers are carried to the front end ofthe block to about one-half the diameter thereof, as indicated in Fig. 3. The tapers 44;, 44 at thelateral sides of the front end of the block are prefs erably less than the top taperso that the expansionpressure imparted to the wall of the cavity, as the expansion block moves through the cavity, is partiallysidewise, but 3 rear end, as indicated at 47, 48, 48, the top taper 47 being preferably: somewhat greater than the side tapers l8, 48. As a result of this. tapered form given to thewrear end of the expansion block, the walls of the cavity, after they have been expanded by the block, follow and are supported by the tapered portion of the rear end of the block and are, therefore, allowed to contract gradually inwardly at the top and lateral sides of the a cavity, and in so contracting over the tapered portions ofthe block the surfaces of the contracting walls are smeared and given a compact texture which prevents the walls caving or falling inwardly, which would occur if the block terminated abruptly at its largest :diameter.

Referring now to the tile carrier and to the improvements therein constituting my invention, the said carrieris herein shown'as composed of a plurality of relatively short sections 50, 50, there being preferably two or more sections for the length of each tile A laid thereby. These sections are of trough shape, and open upwardly to receivethe tile. They are made of a radius to extend at their sides about one-half way up the sides of the tile, as shown in Fig. 8. The said sections are connected together by means of one or more strips 51 which lie over the central inner sidesfof the sections and said stripmay be attached to the sections by any suitable fastening means,.as bythe rivets 52.: The sections overlap each other at adjacent sides, and are preferably overlapped at their 1 lower central parts to a slightly greater ex: tentthan at their sides, as shown ingFig. l. The forward end of each section lies over the rear end of the next front section, as at indicated in Figs. 3 and 4, so as to present no obstructions at the joints todig. intothe floorof the cavity. The straps or hands 51 preferably possessconsiderable flexibility;

and constitute, in effect, hinges for connecting the sections of the articulated carrier thus constructed so that the carrier is free to adapt itself to indirect courses when being inserted into the cavity, and also to be readily rolled for storage and transfer purposes. This form of the carrier permits the carrier to readily follow the cavity that is curved or deflected laterally out of a straight line. This due to the fact that the carrier, as a whole, possesses considerable lateral flexibility and, furthermore, by reason of the curvature of the lower sides of the carrier sections, said carrier may, to an extent, roll or turn'laterally in thecavity in passing about a curve.

An advantage of the trough shaped carrier shown is that the tiles are thereby main tained centrally within the cavity, so that when the carrier is pulled away or stripped from the'tile they naturally fall to the lowermost point of the cavity and are thereby alined. Owing to the friction between the carrier and the tile, when the carrier is,

stripped away from the tile, the tile will be forced into close abutting relation so as to thereby avoid wide joints between the adj acent tiles.

. In-order to strip the carrier from the tile after a row of tile, the length of the carrier, has been laid, an excavation, such as is shown at in Fig. 2, is dug into the ground to uncover the forward end of the carrier. Preferably the carrier sections terminate short of the forward ends of the strap or bands 51 and the excavation 55 is dug. between the first tile of the row and the rear end of the expansion block. After the excavation. has been dug, an open strut frame 56 is interposed between the end of the forwardmost tile on the carrier and the opposite wall of the excavation. Thereafter as the mole and the expansion block and the carrier are moved forwardly and the row of tile in rear of the strut frame 56 is held from moving by said frame so that the carrier is pulled away from beneath the laid row of tile to allow the tile to drop upon the floor of the cavity. As the carrier is thus pulled away from the row of laid tile, thus held from movement, other tiles are placed upon the carrier, to be thereby carried into the next section of the cavity. The space between the two rows of tile thus laid, and which occurs at the bottom of the excavation 55, is filled in byv the number of tiles or parts of tiles required to bridge said space. After the net succeeding row of tiles has been laid another excavation, at the forward end thereof, is dug, and the tile carrier is stripped from said row and another row of tiles is commenced in the same manner as before set forth.

In starting a tile receiving cavity it is convenient and preferable to begin at the outlet end and work backwardly. If this I outlet'end is an open ditch or the like, the

The operation of the tile laying apparatus will be apparent from the foregoing. In such operation the tile are laid continuously on the carrier as the carrier advances and are drawn thereby into the'cavity. During the advance of the mole to form the cavity the grade ofthe cavity is maintained at a predetermined angle or fall by the cooperation of a surveyor in rear of the draft device using a surveyors level or like instrument, and a person at the front end of the draft beam whose duty it is to raise and lower the front end of the draft beam in accordance with signals communicated to him by the person at the surveyinginstrument.

instead of providing a separate expansion block, as described, I may construct or shape the rear end of the mole to function as an expansion element, or to function as a supporting element for the inwardly springing or contracting wall of the mole to smear the wall of the tile receiving cavity. Such a device is shown in Fig. 7. In this device the front end of the mole and its connection with the colter bar is the same as shown in the previously described figures. At its rear end it is provided with a portion of enlarged diameter 60 and in rear thereof with top and lateral tapered portions 61, 62 which erve the same purposes as the tapered portions 47, 48 of the expansion block before described. I

It is obvious that my invention is capable of further variation within the spirit and scope ofthe broader claims appended hereto and the invention is not limited to the structural details enumerated, except as hereinafter made the subject of speeificclaims, and as imposed by the prior art.

I claim as my invention 1. In a tile laying machine, a mole with means to advance it through the earth, associated with an expansion and smearing member at the rear. end of the mole, said member being made of greatest diameter adat its top and side from greatest diameterto bothits front and; rear, and made cylindric at its bottom. 1

carrier in rear of the expansion block, and a strap inset 111to the lower side of the (BX- spectively.

3.1m a tile laying machine, a mole, with means for advancing 1t athrough the earth, an expansion block 1nrear thereof, atile pansion block and having neans at its ends to connect it'with the mole and carrier, re-

4. In a tile laying machine, an expansion block whichis tapered atjits top and lateral sides from the intermediate largest diameter thereof toward its rear end and islongitudinally straight and transversely cylindric at its bottom. 1 a

5. In atile laying machine, an expansion block which is tapered at its top and lateral:

Copies of this patent may be obtained for WashihgtomD. C.

means for advancing it" through the earth, and tapered wall forming or smearing 1 means at the rear of the mole over which the: cavity wall gradually contracts, the

taper of suchmeans actingonthe upper-and side walls of the cavity and said means being longitudinally straight and transversely cylindricat its bottom togive definite cylina dricity to the floor of the cavity. y a

7 .t In a tile laying machine, a mole, with a means for advancing it through the earth,

from the tail iron and having, means at its front end to connect it to the rear end of the mole.

an expansion block in rear of the mole, a tail iron insetinto the lower side of the block, a tile carrier attached to the rear end of the tail iron, said block being removable In testimony, thatI claim the foregoing as my invention I aflix my signaturein the presence oftwo witnesses, this 13th day of September, A. D. 1912. I

CHARLES H. CLARK Witnesses: ALB. CLARK, W. L. HALL.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 0 2mm, 

